Cloud storage can simply get messy, however you could by no means discover it till the day you want a file and may’t bear in mind the place you saved it. My Google Drive had 15GB of knowledge, on MEGA I had 20GB, and OneDrive had about 5GB. I nonetheless had Dropbox, which I had one way or the other stored through the years.
I had quite a lot of free storage, but additionally quite a lot of chaos once I wanted necessary recordsdata. Rclone fastened it by changing all my free cloud storage into one huge drive.
OS
macOS, Linux, Home windows
Value mannequin
Free
rclone is a command-line program that manages recordsdata on cloud storage. The instrument provides a substitute for cloud distributors’ internet storage interfaces.
Rclone treats each cloud supplier the identical
That’s what makes merging them doable within the first place
When you arrange cloud storage on rclone, it would not matter which of them you utilize; the instrument sees all of them as remotes. This makes them summary and permits the potential of merging. Utilizing rclone could initially really feel daunting in case you’re not used to the terminal; it is primarily a command-line instrument. Nevertheless, when you run the rclone config command, the method is well-guided. The instrument walks you thru selecting a supplier, logging in, and naming it.
I had a easy configuration for Google Drive and OneDrive. The instrument opened a browser window the place I signed in and granted entry. I’ve used MEGA for a number of years, however because it would not use OAuth, rclone accesses it utilizing direct credentials as a substitute.
It solely will get barely sophisticated whenever you begin naming them. For a number of remotes, I named them drive1, drive2, and cloud, however had to return and rename them with one thing extra wise and distinct in order that I would not get confused later. After going by this preliminary setup, my storage was listed and accessible from the identical location. The remotes weren’t but unified, however there was already some good progress.
The union backend is what turns “a number of accounts” into one drive
Not metaphorically: your storage really swimming pools
Afam Onyimadu / MUO
Rclone connects all the things; nonetheless, the actual worth comes from making all of your storage act like a single pool. It is in a position to do that because of Union. Slightly than deal with particular person remotes as totally different locations, they’re mixed right into a single cupboard space. They turn out to be an precise merged filesystem.
Earlier than I lastly settled on Union, I attempted alternate options, and there was a transparent distinction:
Strategy
What it felt like
Why it didn’t work (or did)
Separate remotes
Nonetheless fragmented
Similar downside as earlier than
Mix backend
Neatly organized
Nonetheless siloed underneath the hood
Union backend
One steady area
That is what I wanted
What differentiates all these approaches is how recordsdata are distributed. You do not get automated storage optimization with rclone Union with out giving path through the add coverage. You may select between any of the next:
- eplfs or epmfs (present path, least/most free area) writes recordsdata to whichever distant already has recordsdata in that folder path.
- lfs (least free area) writes recordsdata to whichever distant has the least remaining area.
- mfs (most free area) writes recordsdata to whichever distant has probably the most remaining area.
- rand (random choice throughout remotes) rotates recordsdata throughout remotes evenly.
I stick with lfs as a result of it is a easy, predictable, and hands-off coverage.
Rclone will not write to a virtually full distant, even underneath lfs, as a result of it skips drives beneath a minimal free area threshold mechanically.
After the setup, I had a pooled backend consisting of a number of accounts and suppliers. This logical storage solved the construction downside I had, but it surely didn’t fairly really feel like a drive simply but.
Mounting Union distant
When it lastly appears like one drive
Afam Onyimadu / MUO
At this level, I used to be interacting with rclone conceptually. I used to be working instructions, checking config, and considering by way of remotes, however this modified as quickly as I mounted the Union distant. I acquired one thing tangible: an precise drive on my system. It existed in File Explorer as a single drive letter that housed all my recordsdata. It didn’t have supplier names or any type of separation.
On macOS, the mount seems as a quantity in Finder reasonably than a drive letter — similar habits, totally different presentation.
Once I dragged recordsdata into this storage, the add started, and small recordsdata have been uploaded in seconds. I wasn’t deciding between Google Drive, OneDrive, or another account. The file is uploaded to whichever distant has obtainable area, and I may open it later with out figuring out the place it was bodily housed.
This new drive behaves like native storage. Nevertheless, it is not, and this turns into evident when the web connection is sluggish, with massive recordsdata taking longer to switch or sync. It was nice for normal use, however apps reminiscent of database software program or any purposes that lock recordsdata whereas open could behave unpredictably with a mounted cloud drive.
If an app behaves unusually, attempt copying the file domestically first, engaged on it, then shifting it again to sidestep most compatibility points.
Free cloud storage lastly behaves like actual storage
I exploit a number of free cloud storage providers, and it at all times appears like juggling accounts. I seek for recordsdata by a number of accounts, and I’m usually indecisive about which account will get which uploads. Rclone has sorted many of the friction, and I merely retailer my recordsdata. There was a giant distinction since I began utilizing rclone.
Earlier than rclone
After rclone
A number of apps and logins
One mounted drive
Fixed selections
Simply save the file
Wasted free area
Totally utilized storage
Of all of the adjustments it introduced, probably the most important was psychological. I not care the place recordsdata find yourself as a result of I merely do not need to. Now, so long as a file would not want ultra-fast native entry, it goes into the rclone drive. It is a dependable and easy setup. Configuration takes simply a day; afterward, it eliminates a lot of the friction in your each day workflow.
Associated
I changed Google Drive with a self‑hosted cloud and the liberty is price it
A self-hosted cloud could be very liberating and surprisingly not as laborious to arrange.
